This article analyses the use of performative metaphors in studies that examine
interactive service work in the tourism industry. That these metaphors provide a
valuable means to conceptualize this type of work is not disputed. Performative
metaphors aptly capture the nature of service work, with its unpredictability and
audience scrutiny. However, performative metaphors can be extended so that they
address not only the embodied actions of service employees but also the social
relations that shape ‘theatrical’ production. Tourism
researchers could deploy these metaphors in ways that exhibit the broader power
structures that affect the enactment of interactive service work. In this article,
it is demonstrated that performative metaphors can be used to articulate the often
difficult conditions and circumstances under which cruise-ship service employees work.
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